From Mead to Marseilles

By Charles Lowell and Luke Broccolo

Neal A. Ballinger

October 2, 1891 – May 4, 1980

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Neal Albert Ballinger was born on October 2, 1891, in Highland Lake, Colorado, an unincorporated plot of land in Weld County, Colorado. Neal was the second son to his parents Abraham and Sarah M. Ballinger, and by 1900, Neal was the second oldest of four sons, with his older brother Joseph aged 10, and younger brothers Herman and Harry.[1] His father Abraham had moved out to Jefferson, Colorado by 1870 with his family,[2] and worked as a farmer in the region around Mead, Colorado. Mead, Colorado had first been settled by Paul Martin Mead, the nephew of the founder of Highland Lake, in 1905.[3] Officially, Mead was filed with Weld County on February 19, 1906,[4] and declared a town on March 17, 1908.[5] The town of Mead emerged as a “beet dump” to allow various farmers in the region to bring their sugar beets before they could be shipped on the new line of the Great Western Railroad to a processing factory.[6] Mead would go on to become a central point in Weld County, Colorado, given its proximity to the new route of the Great Western Railroad.

Neal Ballinger was enlisted into the army on October 4, 1917 and stationed at Ft. Lupton in Weld County, Colorado.[7] In 1919, he was transported to Marseille, France, arriving on May 8 of that year via the ship Caserta.[8] While the Armistice that brought the fighting of World War I to an end was signed on November 11, 1918, the Treaty of Versailles was not signed by the Allied forces until June 28, 1919.[9] In fact, the United States failed to ratify the Treaty of Versailles; thus, they had to sign their own separate peace treaties with Germany and Austria-Hungary from August 24– 29, 1921. It is important to note that the Treaty of Versailles was not officially signed until the summer of 1919 because that explains why many nations, including the United States, still had forces in the regions. While the fighting was indeed over, these soldiers helped rebuild the greatly devastated areas and helped re-instill the systems of power. It is unclear to tell why Neal was specifically sent to Marseilles; however, there were many soldiers sent to the region. Given the date of Neal’s arrival, it can be concluded that he did not experience any battles; however, his presence in Marseilles was not any less important because of that. Neal received a “Special Discharge” from the army on May 13, 1919.[10] This is a unique type of discharge as it was neither Honorable nor Dishonorable; however, these “Special Discharges,” also known as “Blue Ticket Discharges,” were handed out beginning in 1916. Blue Ticket Discharges, so named because of the blue paper on which the discharge was printed, were disproportionately issued to African-American servicemen and were sometimes used by military commanders to discharge gay and lesbian service members, especially during World War II, when the Blue Ticket Discharge was viewed as an alternative to court martial. While these were not dishonorable discharges, they still barred those veterans who received Special Discharges from reaping the rewards of the Office of Veteran Affairs once they returned home.[11] This is an incredible injustice that has impacted the lives of many veterans; however, Neal would not let the lack of benefits from the VA deter him on his journey through life.

When he returned home from France, he lived with his parents in Winbourn, Weld County, Colorado.[12] Seven years later, he married Edna Rickers on January 15, 1927, in Boulder, Colorado.[13] A year later, Neal would become a father with the birth of his daughter Norma,[14] who would be the couple’s only child. Working as a farmer, he lived with Edna and Norma in Winbourn, Colorado.[15] In 1941 like so many Americans at the time, he registered for the Second World War Draft at the age of 50 years old;[16] however, he was never drafted and did not serve due to his age. On May 4, 1980, Neal Albert Ballinger passed away.[17] He is buried in the Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado.

Footnotes ↓

[1] Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/17496809:1002; “Discovering Mead, Colorado,” Mead Area Historical Society (Mead Area Historical Society), accessed July 14, 2021, https://www.meadhistoricalsociety.org/mead.html; “Neal Ballinger,” 1900 United States Federal Census, ancestry.com, accessed July 14th, 2021.

[2] “Abraham Ballinger,” 1870 United States Federal Census, ancestry.com, accessed July 14th, 2021.

[3] “Discovering Mead, Colorado,” Mead Area Historical Society (Mead Area Historical Society), accessed July 14, 2021, https://www.meadhistoricalsociety.org/mead.html.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Mead Area Historical Society, “Mead Area Historical Society Home Page,” Mead Area Historical Society (Mead Area Historical Society), accessed July 14, 2021, https://www.meadhistoricalsociety.org/?fbclid=IwAR1Auk1je1XYwTaMki97DRR5YevvuAQuyyV5_KiT779bu1AIqP4l1knj0RE.

[7] Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/10510707:2441

[8] Ancestry.com. U.S., Army Transport Service Arriving and Departing Passenger Lists, 1910-1939 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=61174&h=7459157&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=6224

[9] “Stars and Stripes: The American Soldiers' Newspaper of World War I, 1918 to 1919.” Stars and Stripes Timeline. Washington D.C. Accessed July 15, 2021. https://www.loc.gov/collections/stars-and-stripes/articles-and-essays/a-world-at-war/timeline-1914-1921/.

[10] Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/10510707:2441

[11] Tim MacArthur, “The Blue Ticket Discharge: A Color That Has Stained the Lives of WWII-Era Veterans for Over 75 Years,” Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (Mason Veterans and Service Members Legal Clinic Antonin Scalia Law School George Mason University, May 17, 2019), https://mvets.law.gmu.edu/2019/05/17/the-blue-ticket-discharge-a-color-that-has-stained-the-lives-of-wwii-era-veterans-for-over-75-years/.

[12] “Neal Ballinger,” 1920 United States Federal Census, ancestry.com, accessed July 14th, 2021.

[13] Ancestry.com. Colorado, County Marriage Records and State Index, 1862-2006 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=61366&h=19256&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=6061

[14] “Neal Ballinger,” 1930 United States Federal Census, ancestry.com, accessed July 14th, 2021.

[15] “Neal Ballinger,” 1940 United States Federal Census, ancestry.com, accessed July 14th, 2021.

[16] Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/17496809:1002

[17] Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2014. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=3693&h=2671328&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=6224

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